Knick fans may think Victor Wembanyama is public enemy No. 1 currently, but a former Knicks head coach sure doesn’t think that way.
Isiah Thomas, who coached the Knicks from 2006-08 and also served in the front office, defended Wembanyama Friday morning on the “Run it Back” Show, saying he’s been the victim of physical abuse all NBA Finals long and pushed back on the idea the Spurs star is “dirty.”
“Wemby has been the victim of some of the dirtiest s–t ever. I mean, people are grabbing and holding him,” Thomas said.
“With Wemby, we’re allowing people to grab and hold him, knock him down. They literally have him locked up. With his demeanor, they’re lucky he hasn’t turned around and popped one of them in the face real quick,” Thomas added. “Big men, normally you don’t get to be this aggressive with them without them having the ability to retaliate, hold their temper and all of that.”
Thomas compared the situation to “hack-a-Shaq,” where teams would purposely hit and foul Shaquille O’Neal to send the poor free-throw shooter to the line.
“Shaq took more abuse in our league than probably any NBA player that’s ever played,” Thomas said.
In regards to Wembanyama, Thomas may be in the minority.
Knicks fans were fuming after Wembanyama shoved Jalen Brunson to the ground early in Game 3 and wasn’t called for a flagrant foul.
Even though the NBA reviewed the play Tuesday, they did not penalize him.
In the third quarter of Game 4, Wembanyama was called for a flagrant foul after elbowing Karl-Anthony Towns in the face.
The flagrant now means Wembanyama is at three flagrant points this postseason after getting two for elbowing Naz Reid in the second round.
One more flagrant would lead to an automatic suspension.
Wembanyama and the Spurs are on the brink of elimination after blowing a 29-point lead in Game 4, and trail the Knicks 3-1 as the series shifts back to San Antonio for Saturday’s Game 5.
